The Sarasota County Commission will meet at 9:00 a.m. on November 5 at the Robert L. Anderson Administration Center, 4000 South Tamiami Trail in Venice, to consider several measures affecting growth, infrastructure, and development.
Among the most significant items on the agenda are multiple public hearings related to land use and zoning. In Venice, commissioners will review a set of ordinances tied to the Blackburn Court development proposal. The plan calls for amending the county’s Comprehensive Plan and Critical Area Plans to allow a mixed-use project south of East Venice Avenue and east of Jacaranda Boulevard. The proposal would permit up to 180 multifamily residential units and 10,000 square feet of office and retail space on roughly 10 acres, with a maximum height of 55 feet under a special exception.
In Englewood, commissioners will hold a public hearing to consider Rezone Petition No. 25-01 for property at 1407 East Manasota Beach Road. The proposed change would modify the zoning from OUE-2 and OPI with stipulations to an amended OPI district, along with a waiver request to reduce the required landscape buffer along the SR 776 Corridor from 50 feet to 20 feet. Another Englewood-related item, Special Exception Petition No. 1913, seeks approval for a wholesale plant nursery and landscape supply business on land north of River Road and east of Winchester Boulevard.
The agenda also includes a funding item authorizing $150,000 toward replacing an Englewood Area Fire Control District fire boat, using West Coast Inland Navigation District funds.
Other business for consideration includes a resolution to provide $500,000 for monitoring and maintenance of Midnight Pass, and a Unified Development Code amendment addressing voluntary freeboard and height requirements to improve flood resilience.
Public comment will be taken at the start and end of the meeting, with a three-minute limit per speaker. All public hearings require testimony under oath. Supporting documents and meeting access are available at www.scgov.net/meetingsondemand.
